Tag Archive for: finance

Posts

BIGG Success Logo boxed

How to Reach an Agreement with Your Spouse on the Family Finances

/in /by

By Bigg Success Staff
06-25-08

Bigg Success with Money

couple

Opposites attract. Unfortunately that can create some problems when it comes to the family’s finances.

Money is one of the biggest sources of disagreement between spouses. It’s often the case that one spouse is a “saver”, while the other is a “spender”.

If you’re the saver …
You may feel like you’re beating your head against the wall. Your spouse doesn’t seem to understand that you’re trying to save for the future. So, just when you think you’re getting a little ahead, your spouse goes out and spends the money. Now you’re back to little, or no, money in the bank!

If you’re the spender …
You may want to “live a little”. Your spouse doesn’t seem to understand that you can’t put off all the fun. You can’t worry about every single dollar you spend. Life’s too short to not live it. Your spouse just wants to save money for when you’ll be too old to enjoy it. You want to live now!

So how do you come to an agreement on the family’s finances?

By having a conversation with your spouse.

Values
Talk about your respective values. To one of you, being debt free may be important. Perhaps you don’t like to use credit cards at all. Or perhaps it’s important to one spouse to buy certain things. It may be as simple as eating lunch out every day.

Understand what’s important to each of you individually before you try to proceed collectively. Something may be very important to your spouse and not important at all to you. That’s okay. You don’t have to agree with each other. You just need to understand to each other.

Goals
Now that you understand each other, you can proceed to your mutual goals. Certain items should be somewhat sacrosanct. An example would be funding your retirement. If you would like to have the option of not working at some point, you have to set money aside while you are working.

As you establish your goals, keep each other’s values in mind. Instead of trying to find ways to pay for what’s important to you, look for ways to get what’s important to your spouse. Ask him or her to do the same thing for you. This role reversal will make the conversation more productive because you’re not fighting for what you want; you’re fighting for what your spouse wants.

Strategies
With your goals established, you know what you need to do. Now you just have to do it. Sounds easy, doesn’t it?

It’s not!

This is the hard part because it’s involves the daily decisions that make or break the budget.

There are a number of strategies you may employ. You may each take an allowance for all of your incidental expenses. You may set a limit and agree to call each other before spending that amount. You may maintain a joint account or separate accounts. You may even do both.

Find what works for you and your spouse through trial and error. Then go for your goals. As you see your accounts grow and grow, following your plan will get easier and easier!

Hear today's lesson and laugh on The Bigg Success Show. 

Related posts

272]

860]

38]

How To Get Rich

154]

(Image by npiggy2)

BIGG Success Logo boxed

Should You Go Into Business with a Friend?

/in /by

By Bigg Success Staff
06-19-08

Bigg Success in Business

friends

You have an idea for a business. You’re excited. But you need help – help to get the work done, help to finance the business, help with any number of things.

You tell your friend about your business and she gets all excited too. She wants to help. She wants to be your partner.

Fantastic!

Or maybe not …

It’s often true that friends who go into business together don’t remain friends. And they don’t make it as partners, either!

Now, business partners may become friends. It just seems that, when friends become business partners, the friendship and the business often suffer.

If you still think it’s a good idea to go into business with a friend, here’s a suggestion. Except you shouldn’t think of it as just a suggestion. You should view it as something you absolutely have to do before you launch the business with your friend.

A business partnership is like a marriage. You need a pre-nuptial agreement.
So have your business attorney draw up such an agreement. To figure out what should be in the agreement, sit down with your attorney and discuss all the “what ifs”.

Here are a few examples:

  • What if the business fails?
  • What if it succeeds wildly?
  • What if one of you is incapacitated?
  • What if one of you dies?
  • What if one of you gets divorced?
  • What if one of you wants out?

These aren’t pleasant things to think about, let alone talk about. However, discussing them now while you’re friends beats trying to work it out later when you might not be so friendly.

There’s no money better spent than the money you’ll spend to have your attorney walk you and your friend through scenarios like these. If you insist on going into business together, then establish the boundaries of your business relationship upfront. 

Hear today's lesson and laugh on The Bigg Success Show. 

Related posts

896]

897]

900]

903]

912] 

(Image by lusi)

BIGG Success Logo boxed

I Don’t Know How to Spell Millionaire, But I is One!

/in , /by

On the show, George shared a story from when he was a young man. So, obviously, this is an old story! He met a gentleman who was very successful in business and real estate investing. But you wouldn’t have known he had a dime to his name.

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | More

George said he can still picture this man sitting at the table in his coveralls with his cap. He was a great guy who said something George never forgot.

This man said, “I don’t know how to spell millionaire, but I is one.”

How did he become a millionaire?
He bought something!

Not a new wardrobe. Or a bigger house, a new car, a second house, or a boat.

He bought an income-producing asset. He bought a duplex.

What he bought is important
He put down a small amount of money and found a bank that helped him finance the rest of it. He improved the property by doing minor things like painting, putting down new carpet, and some basic landscaping.

So now he had a property that looked much better. So tenants were willing to pay more to live there. So he increased the rent.

Then he went back to the bank because he was making more money. They gladly refinanced his loan, because the income from the property would support it.

What he did next is even more important
He took this money from the bank and bought another investment property. A slightly bigger one. Which he then improved. He kept doing this over and over again until he became a millionaire. Eventually he owned a whole bunch of things.

What you don’t need to become a millionaire
You don’t have to be that smart to become a millionaire; just be sensible. It also doesn’t take that much money to get started. You don’t have to be a super savvy business person. And you don’t have to have a fancy education, although education is a good investment.

And you don’t have to wear flashy clothes!
 
4 tips that can lead you to a million dollars

#1 – Start small.
Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Assume you’ll lose everything, so don’t invest more than you can afford to lose.

#2 – Know your strengths and weaknesses.
Get help. If you’re handy, find someone who is financially savvy. If you’re financially savvy, find someone who’s handy. If you have time but no money, find a partner with money. If you have money but no time, partner with someone who has the time.

#3 – Make yourself accountable.
The CEOs of the biggest companies in the world answer to a Board of Directors. Get someone who will hold you accountable – be it a mentor, a coach, or a partner.

#4 – Logic, not emotion, rules.
Don’t fall in love with a property. You’re not looking for cute; you’re looking for cash flow. Don’t rent to a tenant because you like him or her; rent to them because of their good credit score.

Our bigg quote today is by Brian Koslow:

“Any self-made millionaire listens for opportunity. The average
person listens for what's wrong and why something won't work.”

Paying attention may just pay you a million!

Click on our Comment link below to share your thoughts 
Click on the Share This button below to Digg, Stumble, Mixx, etc.

Next time, we’ll offer up nine questions to answer before you make extra mortgage payments.

Until then, here’s to your bigg success!

 

Related posts  

40]

219]

199]

489] 

BIGG Success Logo boxed

I Don't Know How to Spell Millionaire, But I is One!

/in , /by

On the show, George shared a story from when he was a young man. So, obviously, this is an old story! He met a gentleman who was very successful in business and real estate investing. But you wouldn’t have known he had a dime to his name.

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | More

George said he can still picture this man sitting at the table in his coveralls with his cap. He was a great guy who said something George never forgot.

This man said, “I don’t know how to spell millionaire, but I is one.”

How did he become a millionaire?
He bought something!

Not a new wardrobe. Or a bigger house, a new car, a second house, or a boat.

He bought an income-producing asset. He bought a duplex.

What he bought is important
He put down a small amount of money and found a bank that helped him finance the rest of it. He improved the property by doing minor things like painting, putting down new carpet, and some basic landscaping.

So now he had a property that looked much better. So tenants were willing to pay more to live there. So he increased the rent.

Then he went back to the bank because he was making more money. They gladly refinanced his loan, because the income from the property would support it.

What he did next is even more important
He took this money from the bank and bought another investment property. A slightly bigger one. Which he then improved. He kept doing this over and over again until he became a millionaire. Eventually he owned a whole bunch of things.

What you don’t need to become a millionaire
You don’t have to be that smart to become a millionaire; just be sensible. It also doesn’t take that much money to get started. You don’t have to be a super savvy business person. And you don’t have to have a fancy education, although education is a good investment.

And you don’t have to wear flashy clothes!
 
4 tips that can lead you to a million dollars

#1 – Start small.
Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Assume you’ll lose everything, so don’t invest more than you can afford to lose.

#2 – Know your strengths and weaknesses.
Get help. If you’re handy, find someone who is financially savvy. If you’re financially savvy, find someone who’s handy. If you have time but no money, find a partner with money. If you have money but no time, partner with someone who has the time.

#3 – Make yourself accountable.
The CEOs of the biggest companies in the world answer to a Board of Directors. Get someone who will hold you accountable – be it a mentor, a coach, or a partner.

#4 – Logic, not emotion, rules.
Don’t fall in love with a property. You’re not looking for cute; you’re looking for cash flow. Don’t rent to a tenant because you like him or her; rent to them because of their good credit score.

Our bigg quote today is by Brian Koslow:

“Any self-made millionaire listens for opportunity. The average
person listens for what's wrong and why something won't work.”

Paying attention may just pay you a million!

Click on our Comment link below to share your thoughts 
Click on the Share This button below to Digg, Stumble, Mixx, etc.

Next time, we’ll offer up nine questions to answer before you make extra mortgage payments.

Until then, here’s to your bigg success!

 

Related posts  

40]

219]

199]

489] 

BIGG Success Logo boxed

Answer These 3 Questions to Get Money for Your Business

/in /by

By Bigg Success Staff
04-30-08

Bigg Success in Business

jockey 

Most businesses need some outside financing to succeed. Yet attracting capital isn’t always easy to do. Money people – angel investors, bankers, venture capitalists – bet on jockeys, not horses. They bet on you, not your business.

That’s not to say that you don’t need a good business idea to attract outside funding. Great managers in troubled industries usually lose the fight. Good managers in great businesses will probably do just fine.

So financiers definitely do consider the “horse” as well.

However, all else equal, it’s the “jockey” that wins the race. So they ultimately put their money behind you.

What’s your track record?
Ideally, you’re seeking financing because your business is already successful and you need money to take it to the next level. If that’s not the case, don’t despair. If you’ve successfully run a similar business before, your odds are still good. It’s also important to maintain a good credit score. 

How will you handle adversity?
Your financiers will be trying to determine how you will respond during the inevitable tough times. They want to know that you will work with them, not keep them at bay. Discuss how you overcame past hurdles to put their mind at ease.

Can they work with you?
This is the ultimate question. They want to feel like the chemistry with you is good. You will listen when they offer advice. You will cooperate with all reasonable requests. You will care for your interests by watching out for theirs.

Hear today's lesson and laugh on The Bigg Success Show. 

Related posts

684]

657]

660]

662]

664]

667]

669]

671]

675]

(Image by Banamine,CC 2.0)